1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an operating element with a control knob, which is mounted in a housing or console or the like, and can move in a swiveling manner between a home position and multiple switching or contact positions.
2. Description of the Background Art
Joystick-type operating elements of this nature are known, and are used in practice in a wide variety of fields in order to control machines, software programs, etc. In particular, the operating elements are used in motor vehicles to control a navigation system or an on-board computer. In this case, the operating element is frequently located in the center console between the driver and passenger seats, making the control options clearly visible to the driver.
Known from DE 101 52 978 A1, for example, is an operating element which is flat in design and is conceived such that the control knob can be tilted into four different switching or contact positions, wherein in each case a dome that is provided on the control knob and has a corresponding contact dot comes into contact with a printed circuit board and presses the board elastically downward, thus also providing haptic feedback information to the user.
Other conventional operating elements ensure that only one instance of contact takes place in each swivel position of the control knob. However, some consider it expensive that each switching position has its own contact element with haptic function.